Calming Your Kids During A Thunderstorm

Right away it can seem like a bit of a daunting task, but calming your kids during a thunderstorm can actually be a lot of fun!

We had a doozey of a thunderstorm last night and I knew we were going to have our work cut out for us helping Maddie learn it was nothing to be afraid of!

Booming thunder and flashes of lightning, topped off with a nice long power outage?heck, most parents get startled by it!

So how were we going to overcome this with a 2 year old?!

Calming Your Kids During A Thunderstorm

Be Prepared!

The first step in everything Mommyhood is to always be prepared! As soon as I knew the storm was coming I got to work!

Securing lose items outside (patio furniture, toys, etc) is not only a safety issue, but the loud noises of furniture blowing around (or a favorite toy flying by the window!) will definitely?not help your cause!

Second, I got out all of our ?power outage items?!

We have a couple of flashlights and a ton of tea lights we place in about an inch of water in mason jars (so they aren?t readily available to little hands)! I also made sure we had plenty of snacks and sandwiches if we weren?t able to cook later on.

Lastly, I made sure to charge any electronics that we needed/would be helpful while we had the power available such as cell phones and our laptop!

Give Fair Warning!

You know the storm is on it?s way, so it?s no surprise for you. But imagine if you didn?t and suddenly the winds were blowing, rain was pounding down, there was thunder and lightning, and you just weren?t prepared?

It would be way?more stressful, and this is what will happen for your little one if you dont include them in the preparations!

Not only can you have them help you get things you will need ready, but explain to them why you are doing it!

Talk About It!

I started with pointing out the thunder very early on, when it was quiet and in the distance?and not as scary!

I said ?Do you hear that noise? That?s thunder! It means rain is coming so we better get these chairs inside or they will get all wet!?

As it got closer and louder, each time we heard thunder we?d try and be louder than it, yelling ?BOOM!? as loud as we could and laughing! It became more of a game than something to be afraid of, she started looking forward to the next time she could yell ?BOOM? (and let’s be real…so did I!).

I boiled down a lot of the noises she would hear to ?just the rain?, so the water, thunder, wind, all of it just meant that things were getting all wet. This became the main concern, and since it really wasn?t that bad because the sun would come dry it all up after, the noises were no big deal!

Minimize The Senses!

Even with preparation, the sound and sight of thunder and lightning can be startling for a child, so drowning out the thunder with music, and closing the curtains or wearing sunglasses to tone down bright lightning, can help keep your kids?calm.

If you suspect the power will be going out, it is a good idea to turn it off ahead of time and go right to using your candles and flashlights! Not only can it be a special treat to eat, play, or color by candlelight, but it wont be as scary as the lights shutting off on their own?and playing in the dark offers a great distraction from the storm!

How do you help keep your kids calm during a storm? Comment below!

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